My poor lawn

We visited a National Trust property and the lawns looked like green velvet. I asked the gardener what they used. He told me Sulphate of Ammonia very cheap from garden centres or Wilco etc. - you just add it to the water. Anyone else know about this?

There are lawn care services in most areas now (e.g. Greenmaster). You can arrange for them to come out three times a year (maybe it's four, but I think it's three) to apply fertiliser and weed maintenance (different requirements at different times of the year. We have quite a large lawn at the back and a small one at the front. It costs us £13 per visit. That is cheaper than buying the necessary 'Weed and Feed' stuff and we don't have to do a thing. Are lawns are in excellent condition (aside from the occasional small brown patch caused by the dog), lush, green and weed free!

I did use the coated moisture retaining grass seed roses and I really can't blame the birds as we don't get many due to the abundance of seagulls in this area. Have watered twice today as suggested and hoping for a bit of warmth I the ground this weekend. One thing for certain I won't be using the loss killer we used agin in in a hurry. I will look the Mo Bacter stuff up on Amazon.

As Bluegayne says the fast germinating stuff has a coating on it, which the birds don't seem to like all that much.
For anyone wanting to kill moss as shysal says, see the other gardening thread as we have had success with Mo Bacter, ordered through Amazon.

Try mixing grass seed with damp compost and leave for a few days. When the seeds start to germinate, scatter over the patches and firm lightly before watering in. This works for me.

Lawns are a pain. Gardener has put new turf down. Just makes the rest look awful. Full of clover, moss. But at least green!

If the moss/weedkiller/lawn feed is dry and has a dispenser you have to walkfast, if you walk slowly it dispenses too much and will damage the lawn (as I discovered to the detriment of the lawn, some of the grass died). Last year I bought an electric rake/scarifier to save my back. I used it recently and it took up a huge amount of 'thatch'. I then over-sowed with seed and a bit of old compost, since then (2 weeks ago) it hasn't rained so no germination - yet. I always cut the lawn with the blades at the highest level and there is very little moss and only the odd weed that can be spot treated. Yes, I'm a lawn obsessive!

If it is a small bare patch I often lift unwanted grass seedlings from my flower beds and slot them in, water well and let nature take its course.

Grass seed needs moisture to germinate. If the top of the soil dries out the seeds don't stand a chance. If I have a bare patch I sow the seeds, cover with spent compost, water well then lay plastic over the top. Works a treat!

Yes we are 1974cookie we invested in an aerator that you push around the garden. A kind of roller with spikes. It was around £20 from Argos and well worth the money.

Are you 'aerating' the lawn Gillybob?
This is a long arduous process of literally digging a garden fork into the lawn every few inches to create drainage holes I guess. Moss I believe loves a lawn that retains water, hence the reason for the growth.

The Moss treatment has totally cleared the moss, but it has left these awful bare patches shysal. I wondered if maybe whatever was in the moss killer had caused the soil to "die" or become infertile, but now think its probably a combination of dry weather and cold ground. I have decided to try and be patient, although I did sprinkle a little more seed and top soil last night (just for good measure). We were recommended the lawn seed with moisture retaining properties (it looks a bluey, green colour) and it wasn't cheap so banking on it working sometime soon. I am also going to water it gently every day without fail.

We are on the North East coast Margiand whilst we haven't had much warm weather it is certainly very dry and we get those cold winds straight off the sea.

Interesting that you say weed killers stay in the ground for around 6 weeks Bluegayn58 6 weeks is a very long time for an impatient gardener isn't it? It has been about 7-8 weeks since we carried out the initial treatment so hopefully should start picking up soon.

Thanks again to all you wonderful people. I really appreciate your great advice and shared experiences.

I reseeded my lawn last year following some landcape work. I added a layer of topsoil and seeded it with a quick germinating lawn seed I bought from B&Q.

The birds didn't bother with it - possibly becuse it has a coating of some sort on the seed. I warted it with a sprinkler every day, but it took two weeks to start germinating.

As for these combined weed and feed treatments, I doubt the moss killer would affect germination as each component of the treatment targets its specific job - killing weeds/moss and feeding grass so there shouldn't be any detriment to new grass.

Most weed killers only stay in the ground for about six weeks anyway - I guess being patient is the answer. (I too am impatient, being a retired garden designer )

I'm hoping the moss takes over my lawn completely, doesn't need mowing, looks green, comfy to walk on, what more could you ask for. :-)

It's the drought! Whereabouts do you live? We are in Lincolnshire, and seeded a new patch 4 weeks ago. Nothing. Yesterday we went out, re-raked the whole lot, and watered it, then left it overnight. We have bought some different seed, coated, which says it's for sun, shade, patches etc etc. We are rewatering it this very minute, DH having sown it this morning. Our front lawn has gone yellow within 3 days, the piercing east wind combined with hot sun. We are not even on the coast. Fingers crossed for the patch on the back! And for yours....

gillybob, you might like to follow the saga of Mo Bacter lawn treatment on the Gran/Grandad's gardening corner thread. rosesarered and I have been trying it, and at last it is showing good results The moss dries up and is digested with no scarifying. We both now have fresh grass growing through the previously mossy areas. It is organic and doesn't cause blackening. It is not cheap but I shall continue to use it in Spring and autumn. Hopefully there will be no further need to go through the re-seeding lark!
www.amazon.co.uk/Bacter-Organic-Lawn-Fertiliser-7-5kg/dp/B009E7E3US/ref=sr_1_4?s=outdoors&ie=UTF8&qid=1494317077&sr=1-4&keywords=mo+bacter&tag=gransnetforum-21

That's what HopeHope has done. Walking in bare feet on the moss sounds heavenly.

If the Moss is green why not have moss instead of grass? Just a thought. Anything for an easy life...

gillybob, yes she is a labradoodle, both her parents were labradoodles and its about 5 generations since the last standard poodle appears on her family tree. She does shed, as do most doodles. She is a typical doodle, big soft affectionate dog but who morphs into a hound if she gets the sniff of a deer.

Tizliz. I can get that , we too have a large Dog, but he only ever goes on the back lawn which is grass. The moss one is for me, and I had to cajole, plead and threaten DH NOT to kill off the moss out front. He was a professional Gardener too before he became ill so I guess it went against all that he had been doing for years. I love it though, and so do the birds, it is soft, and I love to watch them getting the worms, they also like to pull bits of moss out, presumably for nests. I always leave some tufts of dog hair around too in Springtime.

we have often found old empty nests as snug as anything all lined beautifully with the Dog hair .

Our BBC weather forecaster told us tonight that there will be 'a risk' of showers on Friday -
Yes Please! from all the gardeners amongst us

I have found huge variation in different 'brands' of grass seed over the years. Some take ages to germinate (weeks), others germinate quickly, and some include seed that never germinates. I always ignore the recommended quantity for the area to be covered, sowing far more (eg 4x more). Even then I still get bare patches. So it is probably not anything you are doing or not doing. When it does finally grow I find watering with liquid feed like phostrogen or similar encourages it to fill the gaps.

Is she a Labradoodle ? I've just googled them. Lovely.

She sounds lovely Iam64 does she shed hair, like a Lab or need to be trimmed like a Poodle ? My sisters Chihuahua might be tiny but she doesn't half moult. Not sure of spelling as iPad doesn't like molt or moult).

hopehope moss and large dogs = torn/bare patches, then when/if it rains they bring in mud